Four years after the murder of Victorine, drowned in 2020 in a stream near her home in Isère, the trial of the main suspect, Ludovic Bertin, one of the victim's neighbors who admitted the murder but denied any attempted rape, took place. opens this Monday in Grenoble.
A case that moved France. As of this Monday, November 25, and for a period of two weeks, the Isère Assize Court must examine the case linked to the murder of Victorine Dartois, 18, drowned in the Turitin stream near at home, in this same department four years ago.
In the dock is the main suspect: Ludovic Bertin, 29 years old. This is one of the victim's neighbors. After his arrest, the individual admitted to the murder of Victorine while denying any attempted rape. At the time, the affair aroused emotion throughout the country.
The facts occurred on September 26, 2020 late in the afternoon. Victorine, a BTS student, had to walk home after going shopping with friends. The family home is located in Villefontaine.
The victim's last call was at 6:50 p.m. She had called her family to say she was arriving “in 20 minutes.” Unfortunately, Victorine Dartois had disappeared, shortly after her call, near a stadium adjoining a wooded area along the Turitin stream.
Bruises on the neck
Worried about not having news from Victorine, the victim's family raised the alarm. The student's body was found less than 48 hours after her disappearance in the stream. Victorine was stripped of her pants and they were close to the body.
An autopsy of the victim's body was then carried out. It revealed bruising on the neck, confirming the strangulation and death by drowning of the 18-year-old woman.
It was only during the month of October that Ludovic Bertin, business manager, was arrested by the GIGN in Villefontaine. The man confided in a relative and the latter then reported him.
In police custody, the main suspect confessed, explaining that he had encountered Victorine Dartois while jogging. He would have been involuntarily pushed by the victim and an argument would have taken place. It was at that moment that the man, according to him, “panicked” and “squeezed the neck” of the student. Ludovic Bertin subsequently hid the body of the young woman inanimately in a torrent.
Victorine, “a girl who never did anything stupid”
In this case, a question arises: was Victorine subjected to an attempted rape before being killed? Ludovic Bertin denied any sexual motive. On the side of justice, the suspect removed the young woman's pants, but was hampered by her resistance and the arrival of a third party. In all cases, the 29-year-old man was indicted for murder preceded by attempted rape.
Thursday, November 21, 2024, the victim's uncle, Karl Dartois, spoke in the 8 p.m. news on TF1, indicating that Victorine was “a girl who never did anything stupid, and who kept this joy and this good mood. I think of her every day, every day.”
He estimated that Ludovic Bertin “did not just murder Victorine, he killed a family. This is why he must be condemned, because we are going to live with pain every day.”
Also note that the main suspect is known to the courts. He had already been convicted ten times for common law offenses but without going to prison thanks to reduced sentences.
